Bin with discharge means



Sept. 14, 1954 R. C. SPARROWv ETAL BIN WITH DISCHARGE MEANS Filed March 30, 1950 60 BY MARGARET K 62 WILLIAM H. BOYD ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 14, 1954 BIN WITH DISCHARGE S Robert C. Sparrow and William H. Boyd, Charlotte, N. tratrix of 0.; Margaret K. Sparrow, adminissaid Robert C. Sparrow, deceased Application March 30, 1950, Serial No. 152,819.

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a discharge bin and more particularly to a mechanical bin adapted to receive and discharge any suitable or desired material.

Bins have previously been provided having an inclined floor and other structures have been provided with means for moving material towards one end thereof, but these devices have been too complicated in their construction, inadequate for the intended purpose, or otherwise unsuitable.

One object of this invention is the provision of a discharge bin adapted to receive and hold a large'quantity of any desired material, and, when a certain amount of material has accumulated, discharge the material to a baler or any convenient container.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a discharge bin comprising a receptacle with an inclined bottom wall and an open end adjacent the lower end of the inclined bottom wall, and also having a movable gate across the open end and means mounted on the inclined bottom wall for urging material towards the open end.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a discharge bin of the type described above with a rack slidably mounted on the inclined bottom Wall for reciprocation longitudinally of the bin and having a plurality ofupwardly and forwardly extending projections adapted to engage and urge material received inthe bin towards the open end thereof.

The discharge bin, as shown herein illustrating one. preferred form of the present invention, consists of an elongated sheet metal receptacle suitably reinforced with angle and channel irons and provided with an inclined floor or bottom walls maintained at the proper angle by legs at the upper rearward end. The receptacle is substantially enclosed by side and rear walls, and by a screen panel and vertically slidable gate across the the forward open end. A rack slidably mounted on the bottom wall comprises a plurality of transverse members, each provided with a plurality of upwardly and forwardly extending projections. Suitable means is supported on a framework adjacent the rearward end of the receptacle for reciprocating the rack, and in the present embodiment a motor driving an eccentric crank and connecting rod is shown.

Further objects and advantages of the invention Will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of one preferred form of the present invention;

Fig. 2 a side elevational view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1 with a portion broken away to show the drive mechanism;

Fig. 3 a sectional view taken on line 3'3 of Fig. 1; and

' Fig. 4 a fragmentary view of the gate and the guides therefor.

The apparatus, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3, illustrates one preferred form of the present invention comprising an elongated receptacle having side walls l0 and I2 and a rear wall l4, each consisting of suitable sheet material, preferably metal reinforced by the transverse and longitudinal members I 6 and I8, which may consist of channel or angle lines suitably secured, as by welding or by bolts and nuts, etc, to the sheet material and to each other. One panel on each side may be left open and covered by a screen 20 to provide for visual inspection of the interior of the bin.

The bottom wall 22 is inclined downwardly from the rear wall lttowards the forward open end, and is likewise reinforced by transverse channels I6.

A rectangular frame 24 is provided adjacent the, forward open end of the receptacle in spaced relation thereto for a purpose to be described hereinafter, and is suitably supported by brackets 26 extending outwardlyfrom the forward end of the receptacle;

Vertical guide members consisting of two angle irons 28 are provided along the opposite side walls ll! and [2 adjacent the open end of the receptacle for slidably mountinga gate 30, a portion of which is shown in detail in Fig. 4.

The angle irons 28 are separated and maintained inspaced parallel relation by a plurality ofspacing blocks 32, which also serve to limit the movement of gate 30 both upwardly and downwardly by engaging the projections 34 formed byv extending the top members 3| of the gate 30. The upper ends of the angle irons 28 are connected by a pair of angle irons 35 which project outwardly at one end as indicated at 36. The angle irons 35, besides reinforcing the guide structure, also serve to mount pulleys 38 and 40, over which is extended a rope 42 connected to the gate for raising and lowering thereof.

A screen panel 44 is fixedly mounted between side walls It] and I2 to prevent material which may accumulate in the receptacle from falling out over the top of gate 30.

The rearward end of the receptacle is supported on legs 46 to maintain the apparatus with the bottom wall in its inclined position when the apparatus is set up on a level support. Suitable tachment of the braces 48 extend between the legs 46 and the plurality of transverse members 64 extending therebetween. Each of the transverse members 64 is provided with a plurality of upwardly and f forwardly extending projections 65.

A conventional belt conveyor may be provided above and adjacent the rearward end of l the device to feed material into the discharge bin.

As shown in Fig. 2, the conveyor consists of a supporting framework 12, pulley 14 and a belt 16 1 moving in the direction indicated by the arrows.

In the operation of the device, the material is fed on to the conveyor 10 and is discharged into the rearward end of the discharge bin. The motor 50 is kept in operation during the use of the apparatus and keeps pushing the material towards the open end. When thebin has become filled with material, as determined by inspection through the screen panel 20, the gate 30 is raised and the material is then discharged into a baler, bin or any convenient container, or if desired, may bedischarged directly into a truck to be hauled away.

The framework 24 may be-utilized for the atbaler, to s pport a suitable receptacle, or will act as a bumper guard to prevent damage to the apparatus, when a truck is backed up in close proximity thereto.

It is obvious that this apparatus may be used for many different types of material and can be suitably modified to handle any specific type of material for which it is intended to be used.

The; rack 60 may be reciprocated by mechanism such as that shown inthe preferred form of the lpparatus illustrated herein, or alternatively it maybe actuated by a suitable steam or air cylinder, or by an electric thruster. i

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the appended claims.

v What is claimed is:

l. A discharge bin for collecting and discharging material comprising an elongated receptacle having an inclined bottom wall and opposite side walls, a rear end wall adjacent the upper end of said inclined bottom wall, the forward ends of said side walls and bottom wall defining a discharge opening of a width approximately that of the space between said side walls, a gate extend- 4 ing between said side walls across the front of said bin adjacent the lower end of said inclined bottom wall,,said gate being slidably mounted for vertical movement between spaced parallel guides, spacing elements between said guides located to limit the movement of said gate upwardly and downwardly, means for raising and lowering said gate, a fixed panel extending between said side walls and located above said gate in its lowermost position, a rack slidably mounted on said bottom wall and comprising a plurality of transverse members each provided with a plurality of upwardly and forwardly extending projections, and means for reciprocating said rack longitudinally of saidreceptacle whereby material in said receptacle may be moved toward said gate.

2. A discharge bin comprising a receptacle having side walls, a back wall and a bottom inclined downwardly from said back wall, said receptacle having a discharge opening of substantially the width of said receptacle adjacent the lower end of the inclined bottom, a gate mounted on said receptacle for closing said opening and manually movable to open position and to closed position, a rack extending over a majorportion of. the inclined bottom but terminating substantially short of the adjacent edge of the opening and mounted on said inclined bottom for reciprocating motion in the direction of the inclination of the bottom toward and away from said discharge opening, reciprocation producing means extending through said back wall and connected to said rack for producing the reciprocation of the latter.

3. A discharge bin comprising a receptacle having side walls, and a bottom inclined downwardly from one end to a discharge end, said receptacle having a discharge opening of substantially the width of said receptacle adjacent the discharge end thereof, a gate mountedon said receptacle for closing said opening and movable to open position and to closed position, a single rackextending over a major portion of the inclined bottom and terminating substantially shortof the adjacent edge of the opening and mounted on said inclined bottom for reciprocating motion in the direction of the inclination of the bottom toward and away from said discharge opening, reciprocation producing means projecting into said receptacle from said one end and connected to said rack for producing the reciprocation of the latter. v

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

